Tuesday, November 16, 2010

Sunday, November 14, 2010

The character of Faust is based on the story by Goethe. The story was also conceived after reading the play all the way back in college. Over time, the themes have changed and deepened, but the constant element has always been a concern with the difficulties of trying to reconcile personal ambition and a desire for love with elements from a traumatic and painful past.

Faust is a powerful performer with a decidedly mixed character. He is equally capable of gentleness and tenderness as well as cruelty and bitterness. He loves life and at the same time, he is tortured by his past and he is sometimes very angry about that. He loves Susan but he's convinced that love is impossible for him because he can't trust and because he is self-destructive.

All this plays out against the backdrop of a heavy metal band on a fateful tour to try and regain lost glory. With his old friends Duncan and Toby and their new bassist Pandora (who is also involved in a relationship with Duncan), the band is traveling America in an attempt to take advantage of rock and roll nostalgia and make some money. Their tour isn't going very well though. They aren't filling the venues and their performances are mostly listless and uninspired recreations of things they did in the past. It's only after Faust's mother dies and he meets a preacher's daughter named Susan that things start to change for the group. Faust suddenly begins to find his energy and passion for rock again and the fans catch on and the while thing begins to take off. Of course, just when things are starting to pick up, Faust soon comes to realize that he is finally getting the benefits of a long ago pact with the titular Devil.

Faust starts to touch her but he knows that his attraction to her is too intense and backs away.

PANDORA (CONT'D)

You think you can ignore this?

FAUST

Duncan is my best friend. We shouldn't be doing this.

She pushes close to him and again, it's electrifying and he almost can't contain himself.

PANDORA

Forget about Duncan. Forget about Susan. Nothing can stop this Faust.

Faust begins to hear all the devilish sounds that he hears when he is alone drinking in his room. Voices and whispers and sexy murmurings from female voices and his attraction to Pandora is becoming too much. His next words could be to Pandora or the devil and maybe even he doesn't know.

FAUST

Shut the fuck up.

PANDORA

Make me.

FAUST

What the fuck is wrong with you?

PANDORA

Make me.

She slaps him.

FAUST

You fucking bitch. What the hell is the matter with you? You know I -

She kicks and tears at him with her fingernails, until he finally reacts and pins her against the wall. Their faces are close together and they are both breathing heavily. She still struggles and he holds her as they stare at each other. Finally, the closeness and the energy begin to break down resistance and as Pandora moves closer to him, Faust kisses her. The kiss is angry and explosive. They both open up to each other and the floodgates open. It becomes passionate and desperate as they tear at each other removing clothes and kissing and touching. When Faust and Pandora finish their violent sexual encounter, Faust looks at the smeared makeup and the scratches on him and Pandora and he sees for the first time, a scar on Pandora's wrist where she had obviously attempted suicide. As he stares at her face, he is suddenly transported back to his mother's room once again.

INT. MOTHER'S BEDROOM - NIGHT

Faust finds his mother's bedroom door open and enters. His Mother sits at her dressing table with her back to him. As he approaches, he notices an empty bottle of Jack Daniels on the floor and then he sees a small pool of blood near the bottle. Finally, when his mother turns toward him, she has blood smeared over her face like lipstick and her wrists are slit.

MOTHER

Do you like my lipstick?

INT. MOTEL ROOM

Faust goes from looking at Pandora's wrists to looking at her face and running out of the room.